Watermelon Water for Yin Deficiency

My hope is our mild winter will equal a mild summer come our way, but it sure is getting warm early here in Houston! I made myself a refreshing treat of watermelon water last weekend. After rushing about and being outdoors I felt run down, dried out and decided to nourish my yin. There is yin and yang in everything, or a duality constantly striving for balance found in ourselves and reflected in nature. In the body yang represents heat, being active and all around extroverted. The yin is represented by being cool, relaxed and reflecting inward about the world. Women especially have to take care of our yin since we are naturally more yin than men.

You can usually tell if your yin is deficient or imbalanced if you are fairly warm and sweaty at night (when yin is dominant), if you are restless but are also tired and unmotivated and if you find yourself more agitated or irritable than usual. Yes this can have a lot to do with hormone balance and why women can be easily affected. Being stressed over a long period of time can easily create a yin/yang imbalance in the body so it is best to utilize preventative measures of meditation, deep breathing exercises and food therapy on a daily basis. With yin being cool in nature, cooling foods can be nourishing, but take care not to go to the extreme. Ice cream and iced drinks are the extreme here unfortunately.

Your best options are in the form of refreshing fruits and vegetables since there is an excellent selection this time of year. So bring on the salads and fresh fruit! Definitely keep in mind cucumber, celery, beets, lettuce varieties, blackberries, raspberries, bananas, grapes, watermelon. Other yin tonics include seaweed, micro-algae (Ex: spirulina and chlorella) tofu, black beans, kidney beans, mung beans, millet, barley, quinoa, wheat germ, wheat, amaranth and rice.

Here is my favorite fruit water recipe. It's super easy, delicious and will have you sipping on watermelon water in less than ten minutes. Stay cool and enjoy!

Watermelon Water

serves four

1 personal watermelon (seedless optional)

1 cup of purified water

1. Cut your small watermelon into decent wedges with a large knife. If you can resist the temptation to bite into your watermelon right then and there, you are doing great! :)

2. Slice the flesh into criss-cross chunks close to the rinds of the wedge and then take a paring knife and underscore fruit at the rind so you can pile your chunks of fruit into the blender.

3. Add 1 cup of purified water, unless you prefer a thicker juice. Then I would add a half cup of water and keep adding until it's just right. Yup, just like Goldilocks.

4. Blend slowly working up to the highest speed. Serve and enjoy right away or store in your fridge for a refreshing snack later that day.

Day After Spring

Life has been wonderfully busy but it has been too long since I last blogged. Missed out exploring the subtleties of fall and winter cycles and now we are full circle at the time of snappy spring. Honestly Houston's seasons are a bit of a gambit and it certainly seems like we are catching up with the drought that hit us last year. But it is good to see rain and to see our lawns green and gardens thrive.

I've been currently taking classes Clinical Aromatherapy at Derwen Therapies: Holistic Wellness Center and Reflexology Academy. It has been such a blessing to learn more in the field of natural medicine. In Europe and parts of Africa and the Middle East essential oils are revered for their healing and mood uplifting properties. You cannot buy them over the counter in France since their are considered medicine.

A good friend of mine who loves to travel the world told me of when she was in Egypt and having abdominal pain and digestive issues and a fellow traveler gave her lavender oil to put above her lip and she felt much better. At first glance it seems as though these pleasant scents are mostly for spas, candles and potpourri. However these oils are the absolute essence of the plant in highly concentrated forms where just a few drops can have a therapeutic effect.

When I first experimented with the oils after my first class last year I gave my husband a foot massage with ginger oil. I did not use ginger oil directly but with a carrier oil, grapeseed. Many essential oils can actually burn or painful directly on skin, except a few such as lavender and tea tree oil. I noticed while giving him the foot massage, how warm my hands were and the smell is not like fresh cut ginger or ginger candy but a much deeper, earthy spice scent. The next day my husband told me he woke up in the middle of the night with extremely warm feet and had to pull the covers off. Maybe it was not the best choice of oil to use in the middle of August with 100 degree weather but now I know which oil to use in cold winter nights!

I now recognize the power and potential of ginger oil, and not just fresh and dried ginger herb as it is used in Traditional Chinese Medicine formulas. But the interesting bit with essential oils are the emotional benefits. Each therapeutic essential oil is tied to health quality or health benefit such as poor circulation, arthritis and travel sickness for ginger oil. There are also emotional health benefits present in therapeutic essential oils. Ginger oil emotional benefits are self acceptance and self awareness. This fits in the energetic medicine viewpoint of the interconnection between mind, body and spirit. Your thoughts and emotions have an influence on your health and you can influence them back. There are many ways to go about this, and essential oils are one of them. A few others are affirmations, music, color therapy and art therapy.

Affirmations are an amazing tool to utilize for those of us who want to manifest more positive outcomes in our lives and don't seem to have the time, money, confidence to really feel like we can make it happen. We want a change, we want our lives to be different but can't seem to get out of the life track we seem to have stuck on repeat. What we may discover at the root of it all is love. Or more specifically the lack of self-love. It's hard to believe but sometimes to get to where you want to be, you have to believe you deserve it. You have to believe you are worthy of happiness, health and success. Louise L. Hay is the mother of positive affirmations and here are her "12 Commandments to Learn How to Love Yourself":

Stop All Criticism.
Criticism never changes a thing. Refuse to criticize yourself. Accept yourself exactly as you are. Everybody changes. When you criticize yourself, your changes are negative. When you approve of yourself, your changes are positive.

Forgive Yourself.
Let the past go. You did the best you could at the time with the understanding, awareness, and knowledge that you had. Now you are growing and changing, and you will live life differently.

Don't Scare Yourself.
Stop terrorizing yourself with your thoughts. It's a dreadful way to live. Find a mental image that gives you pleasure, and immediately switch your scary thought to a pleasure thought.

Be Gentle and Kind and Patient.
Be gentle with yourself. Be kind to yourself. Be patient with yourself as you learn the new ways of thinking. Treat yourself as you would someone you really loved.

Be Kind to Your Mind.
Self-hatred is only hating your own thoughts. Don't hate yourself for having the thoughts. Gently change your thoughts.

Praise Yourself.
Criticism breaks down the inner spirit. Praise builds it up. Praise yourself as much as you can. Tell yourself how well you are doing with every little thing.

Support Yourself.
Find ways to support yourself. Reach out to friends and allow them to help you. It is being strong to ask for help when you need it.

Be Loving to Your Negatives.
Acknowledge that you created them to fulfill a need. Now you are finding new, positive ways to fulfill those needs. So lovingly release the old negative patterns.

Take Care of Your Body.
Learn about nutrition. What kind of fuel does your body need in order to have optimum energy and vitality? Learn about exercise. What kind of exercise do you enjoy? Cherish and revere the temple you live in.

Do Mirror Work.
Look into your eyes often. Express this growing sense of love you have for yourself. Forgive yourself while looking into the mirror. Talk to your parents while looking into the mirror. Forgive them, too. At least once a day, say, "I love you, I really love you!"

Love Yourself... Do It Now.
Don't wait until you get well, or lose the weight, or get the new job, or find the new relationship. Begin now—and do the best you can.

Have Fun.
Remember the things that gave you joy as a child. Incorporate them into your life now. Find a way to have fun with everything you do. Let yourself express the joy of living. Smile. Laugh. Rejoice, and the Universe rejoices with you!

Food For Thought

Had to share this lovely quote from the book

Wood Becomes Water: Chinese Medicine in Everyday Life

by Gail Reichstein.

You have noticed that everything an

Indian does is in a circle,

and that is because the Power of the

World always works in circles,

and everything tries to be round....

The sky is round, and I have heard

that the earth is round like a

ball, and so are all the stars. The wind,

in its greatest power, whirls.

Birds make their nests in circles,

for theirs is the same religion as ours....

Even the seasons form a great circle

in their changing, and always come

back again to where they were.

The life of a man is a circle from

childhood to childhood,

and so it is in everything where

Power moves.

-Black Elk, Oglala Sioux

Late Summer and the Element of Earth

Whew! Well August flew on by and maybe not quickly enough. We had 30 straight days of 100 degree weather here in Houston and not a lot of rain to cushion the weight of that heat. It's funny since the new school year has started and everyone is getting into Fall mode when really for this area, Fall doesn't start until November, when it actually gets 'cool'. We are technically in late summer mode, and boy do many of us wish it wasn't this hot.

September marks the approach of the Fall Equinox, a day when the day and night are equally twelve hours long. It is technically the last heat of the summer and brings in the first chill of fall; traditionally a time for harvest and celebration. This year it is going to fall on September 23rd, pun intended.

The way Traditional Chinese Medicine breaks down the seasons with the five elements is rather interesting when we get to the Earth element. Spring is connected to Wood, Summer to Fire, Late Summer to Earth, Autumn to Metal and Winter to Water. Late summer is the shortest season and barely recognized due to its short length, the last month of summer and the middle of the Chinese year (the lunar calendar year that starts in late January, early February). But it also is connected to transition periods of the seasons, the equinoxes and solstices.

Late summer represents the transition of the extroverted yang of the hot summer season to the more subtle, inward and cooling yin of Autumn and Winter. It is a time of contemplation, harmony, stillness and being grounded. To meditate on where you are at in the middle of the year and decide which direction you wish to take it.

I'm sure everyone has felt the pull to start wondering about the rest of year when September presents itself. Maybe renew our New Year's Resolutions, getting back on that exercise program or continue our projects we started earlier this year or wrap them up if they are finished. We may wonder about what our plans will be for the holidays and plan our trips and shopping accordingly.

The Earth element is the central element that is the foundation and harmonizes the rest of the four elements. The organs in the body tied to the Earth element are the Spleen and Stomach and not only the actual organs, but the energetic pathways they govern on the body. When we tonify the Earth element we are encouraging the body's immune system function as well as digestion and assimilation. Very important jobs to maintain health on a daily basis.

There are two aspects of constitutional qi or energy that are represented in the body. The one you are born with, your jing or essence that you can consider your DNA or gifts from your parents. The other is the food, drink and air you breathe everyday, which determines how you maintain the health and vitality you were born with.

The Earth element is tied to the daily maintenance of health, constitution and handling everyday stressors. When we have imbalances in our energy level, appetite, digestion and elimination and even women's health issues we can often find the imbalance stemming from the Earth energy within the body. And not just physical imbalances can accomplish this, the more subtle stressors like worry and emotional strain can take a toll on the body and be the root of an Earth element imbalance.

Earth element is tied to sweet taste and the color yellow. When a person is feeling weak, tired or angry, sweet foods are the best pick me up to improve one's outlook as well as physical well being. However, when one craves sweets everyday or constantly, that represents a disharmony within the Earth element. Potentially more on the emotional and spiritual aspect of having excess, chronic worry and not feeling grounded and with a strong foundation in one's life.

To be in tune with late summer season, one should consider foods that are harmonizing and grounding in nature. They would be slightly sweet, potentially rounded in shape and golden or yellow in color. Examples are millet, corn, carrots, cabbage, soybeans, garbanzo beans, peas, sweet potatoes, chestnuts, yams, tofu, sweet rice, amaranth, apricots, cantaloupe, squash and potatoes. Simple preparation for food is recommended, not too much seasoning for a more mild flavor. A good time for soups, casseroles and rice dishes with several ingredients to choose from.

This has also been known as the time for purification or detox with a short, light fast honored in many cultures. But that isn't for everyone and should not be undertaken without easing into a fast of one day at a time and then adding a day to build up to a desired time. The body exudes a lot of energy digesting food and when one does a fast it halts the body's focus on digestion. This increases the opportunity for healing, taking care of things it didn't have time to focus on before and has the added benefit to give mental clarity to one's life.

Despite our eagerness for Autumn to come soon, late Summer is a great opportunity for contemplation and rejuvenation. May you find your inner peace and enjoy the moment.

Whole Food Supplements

No I'm not talking about the lovely grocery store Whole Foods. I'm talking about supplements categorized as 'whole food supplements' or 'raw food supplements'. Instead of chemically derived supplements that you may encounter at the corner drug store or your basic supermarket, there is a surge in multivitamins on the market that are made from actual foods. You aren't taking a pill that had vitamins and minerals derived in a lab and molded into a pill; you can take a supplement that is basically real food, just densely packed.

This is a better way to get nutrients since the body does not absorb all the nutrients in the basic old-style multivitamin. With whole food supplements you are absorbing more, because let's face it, it's food and your body knows how to digest it. That is why when I consider nutritional therapy for my patients I always put them on a whole food supplement. This is to offset any potential nutritional deficiencies that might be inherent to their constitution.

Everyone is different and one can never be certain if the underlying problem is just not enough omega 3's, vitamin B's or magnesium. When you throw in stress and an inclination to get sick, then you will most certainly need more supplementation than normal.

Not all whole food supplements are equal and the one I prescribe for my patients is not available over the counter, only through health care providers. But there are other options out there, and one that I have tried and like is the Alive brand of supplements. So if you are interested in being proactive with your health and are already taking a multivitamin, I recommend trying a whole food supplement.

Hydrate Yourself!

We don't always realize when we are thirsty. Did you know that when you get the conscious thought of being thirsty, you are extremely dehydrated on the cellular level? Combined with the torrential heat of mid-summer sun and being more physically active and outdoors and we are more easily dehydrated even though we drink the same amount. So we must stay diligent to hydrate ourselves!

I have a few tasty, caffeine-free suggestions and recipes for one to consider. First, coconut water is an excellent choice to get hydrated. Then we look at flavored waters as a great way to consume more water without being bored. It is when you add a splash of flavor to water with something light (not sugar). Then we look at one of my favorite things in the world: aquas frescas. It is a traditional Mexican fruit drink made of melons, lemons or limes and more exotic flavors such as flor de jamaica (hibiscus), horchata (cinnamon rice flavor) and even tamarind.

Coconut water: this delightful beverage from the young coconut has natural electrolytes, potassium in particular, packing over 500 mg per 8 oz. serving. To get that much with bananas you will need to eat two! It is not too sweet so low in calories and you don't have to go out and buy an actual young coconut to get it. The popularity has increased to the point where health food stores have plenty of brands to choose fresh coconut water.

Fruit water: very refreshing and easy to put together. Take a pitcher and put in fresh slices of oranges and apples. Pour a few liters of fresh spring or filtered water on top and stick it in the fridge for at least an hour before serving.

Cucumber water: this is a traditional spa refreshment. Take a medium cucumber, peel and slice thinly and add to a pitcher. Pour up to a gallon of fresh spring or filtered water on top and stick it in the fridge for about an hour before serving.

Melon Fresca: Choose your favorite melon, whether it is watermelon, cantaloupe or honeydew and grab your blender. Have 2 cups of your melon chopped and ready to put in your blender. Then add 2 cups of cold water. You can add the juice of half a lime (1 tablespoon) and crushed ice but that is optional. Blend and enjoy!

These are just a few of the refreshing options out there. It's a great starting point and I'll be sure to add more in the upcoming weeks. I am always up for trying a new recipe and combing others. Be adventurous and take care to stay cool and hydrated under the tutelage of the sun. :))

Summer Fire

I have always held a strong belief in food as medicine and knew that if we took care of ourselves with what we ingest on a daily basis we would take care of over 50% of chronic disease in this country. This led me to herbal medicine and food therapy and getting back to our roots where we are not only in balance within ourselves, but also with nature. I like to call it nature sync.

Nature sync is another way of saying acclimating to the seasons, to the weather and climate we are in will bring us into balance. Living in Houston, we have to adjust to sweltering heat, intense humidity and there are a few things we can do to adjust to the dog days of summer. How many of us bring cardigans and sweaters into offices since even though it may be a blazing outside the A/C can be at over a 30 degree difference causing us relief at first from the sweltering sun, but then we eventually become chilled.

This difference in temperature causes a stress on the body and makes it easier for some to catch the pesky summer cold. When the seasons change it can cause a stress response in the body due to the adjustment, whether it’s warmer, cooler, more dry or damp. Some people have allergies others catch a cold more easily when this occurs. The same thing happens in the body at the cellular and energetic level.

With yin and yang theory, summer time is more yang in nature. More robust, warm, strong, bright, light and creative. The element it is most in tune with is fire. Summer time is a time when you should wake up with the sun and be outside often and use that extra boost of energy to be creative and see your projects through. That is the best way to be in harmony with the natural energy of fire.

Regarding the diet, there is an abundance of variety at this time and one should take advantage! Cook lightly and even add a little spicy, since the spice will disperse the heat in the body to the surface of the skin to be released more readily. When the body intakes spicy food and mirrors the heat present outside then the body will be less affected. Examples of spice in food are red and green hot peppers, cayenne red pepper, fresh ginger, horseradish and black pepper. But one should not overdo spicy for it can weaken the natural yang in the body and the result is not being able to warm itself when the cooler seasons are upon us.

Interestingly enough, one shouldn't overdo the ice cold foods, since cold causes contraction and eating iced drinks and super cold foods will contract the stomach and stop digestion. It is a better idea to eat cool, refreshing foods, such as salads and sprouts, fruit, tofu and flowery or leafy teas such as chrysanthemum, mint and chamomile. Cool vegetables include cucumber, celery and fruits are watermelon, apples, lemons and limes. A traditional Chinese summer heat remedy is mung bean soup or a tea, which helps cool the body down if overwhelmed by the heat.

That's also why it is important to intake plenty of fluids at this time and avoid really rich, greasy foods. They will cause sluggishness and trap the heat inside the body making you feel worse overall. These foods include: meat, eggs, excess nuts, seeds and grains.

It is natural to eat less and lightly on hot, bright days. We force ourselves to eat the same all year round to our detriment. The seasons change and so should we to get ourselves more in balance with Earth's natural rhythms.